1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a transportable, extendable/retractable barbeque grill mountable via a connection to a vehicle to enable the barbeque grill to trail behind the vehicle in a suspended manner above the road. The extendable/retractable connection comprises an attachable tripod connection to a locking roller to enable the suspended, extendable/retractable connection to rest on the ground when in use for barbeque grilling.
2. Description of Prior Art
Despite the fact that the preparation of foods by cooking or smoking over an open flame is well known, cooking and food preparation has progressed substantially in that various and sundry means have been utilized to make cooking and smoking over an open flame more easily accessible or convenient for families or campers.
In this connection, among the means that progress has taken are those to facilitate transportation to enable camping or cookouts for families seeking recreation to become easier. These easier means entail eliminating the need for families or campers to carry bulky and space consuming cooking and camping equipment, inclusive of automobile transportation means to facilitate outdoor barbeque grilling.
A collapsible table holder for attachment to a trailer hitch of a motor vehicle is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,189,458 B1. The combination of this attachment comprises:
a collapsible holder coupled to a trailer hitch of a vehicle, the collapsible holder having first, second and third arm members that extend in different directions and are pivotal relative to one another, the first arm member is coupled to the trailer hitch, the third arm member pivotally connected between the first and second arm member and the second arm member adapted to be rotated towards and into face-to-face alignment with the third arm member, and the third arm member adapted to be rotated towards and into face-to-face alignment with the first arm member to form a compact package with the second, third and first arm members arranged one above the other; and
a table having a coupling sleeve attached thereto, the coupling sleeve to be coupled to the second arm member of the collapsible holder, whereby the table is adapted to be supported from the trailer hitch of the motor vehicle by way of the collapsible holder.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,058,832 disclose a portable barbeque grill comprising:
a base, the base having a front wall, rear wall, side walls, a bottom wall, and a top wall completely enclosing a hollow interior, the base configured as a truncated pyramid;
a firebox, the firebox having an interior defined by a rectangular vertically-oriented front wall, a rectangular vertically-oriented rear wall, rectangular vertically-oriented side walls, a rectangular horizontally-oriented bottom wall, and an open top, the firebox disposed upon the base such that the top wall of the base is the bottom wall of the firebox; and
a cooking chamber, the cooking chamber positioned upon the firebox and having an open bottom in fluid communication with the open top of the firebox, the cooking chamber defined by a vertically extending front wall, a vertically extending rear wall, vertically extending side walls, and a top wall configured as a truncated pyramid.
A portable barbecue grill and table for mounting the same on a trailer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,640,949. The barbecue grill apparatus comprises:
a principal supporting arm having a distal end adapted for attachment to a trailer hitch tube and extending horizontally away from a motor vehicle;
a barbecue grill; and
means for mounting the barbecue grill on the principal supporting arm, wherein the mounting means further comprises an
ash saucer fixed to a vertical portion of the principal supporting arm, the ash saucer comprising a plurality of grill fasteners therethrough and an aligned plurality of mounting sleeves on the barbecue grill, with each grill fastener penetrating one mounting sleeve.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,757,756 disclose a transportable outdoor barbecue grill. The grill apparatus comprises:
a firebox configured to contain a supply of combustibles which produce smoke and heat upon burning for purposes of cooking and smoke processing foods;
a first chamber mounted vertically above the firebox and communicating with the firebox, the first chamber configured to receive and retain foods whereby heat and smoke produced within the firebox are directed generally upward into the first chamber for direct cooking of the foods contained therein;
a second chamber having means to receive and retain foods, mounted substantially lateral of said firebox and communicating therewith, whereby smoke produced within the firebox is directed into the second chamber for smoke processing the foods contained therein and whereby heat produced within the firebox is generally not directed into the second chamber; and
a humidifying means mounted in association with the second cooking chamber for producing moisture within the second cooking chamber during the smoke processing of foods therein; the humidifying means including an open-ended receptacle positioned within the second cooking chamber for containing a supply of liquid and a conduit means associated with the receptacle for receiving a supply of liquid from the receptacle, directing the liquid sufficiently proximate the firebox that heat from the firebox is absorbed by the liquid, and thereafter directing the heated liquid into the second chamber.
There is a need in the art of preparation of foods by cooking or smoking over an open flame to better facilitate transportation and ultimate use of a barbecue grill therefor by making the grill more easily transportable by a towing vehicle, and yet not requiring actual removal of the grill from the towing vehicle for barbecuing at the picnic or cook-out site.
One object of the present invention is to provide a transportable, extendable/retractable barbecue grill which is easily towable by a motor vehicle.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a transportable, extendable/retractable barbecue grill that is capable of being towed in a retracted form at a close distance behind the towing vehicle, but extendable for ultimate use on the cook-out turf, while still connected to the towing vehicle.